Vanguard of the Proletariat?

Saturday, June 8, 2024

Today is the first anniversary of my hip surgery. I believe the appropriate gift for the occasion is Extra Strength Tylenol .

.  .  .

I guess that I wasn’t surprised that the list of supposedly the world’s best restaurants didn’t tally with my recent nights out. 
https://www.cnn.com/travel/worlds-50-best-restaurants-for-2024?cid=ios_app

In fact, I don’t think that I will catch up with many in the near future either. As Pete Wells, New York Times food critic, wrote, “the list is dominated by places that normal people can’t get into, where the few diners who will go to almost any length for reservations will go home feeling bloated and drunk. They are not restaurants, or not just restaurants. They are endurance tests, theatrical spectacles, monuments to ego and — the two most frightening words in dining — ‘immersive experiences.’”
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/07/dining/what-makes-a-50-best-restaurant.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

.  .  . 

Speaking of hard to get into, here’s a list of the hardest colleges/universities to get into. 
https://www.mentalfloss.com/posts/hardest-schools-to-get-into

What’s surprising here is that the fancy schmancy Ivy League and nerdy Cal Tech and MIT trail a small, obscure institution that sells its T-shirts for as little as $18.40. 
https://minervauniversitystore.merchorders.com/mu_fans__tshirts__mens_performance

So, as hard as it is to get into Minerva University in San Francisco, it admits about 1% of applicants, it is easy to pretend that you did.
 
Sunday, June 9, 2024
Bruce Franklin, a Stanford University professor who was fired in 1972 because of his Maoist politics, died the other day. His obituary said that he identified as a revolutionary, a word that he defined as “someone who believes that the rich people who run the country ought to be overthrown and that the poor and working people ought to run the country.”

Okay. Poor can be measured, but who are the “working people”? Anyone who gets a W-2? If we change the phrase to “working class,” eliminating non-economic elites, don’t we step into Trump Nation?

.  .  .

To more important matters. Wirecutter, a New York Times consumer products operation, recommended the Cuisinart ICE-21 ice cream maker. Price, ease of use, durability and quality of results favored it. This comment particularly intrigued me. “One long-term tester has had the ICE-21 for about six years, and he’s used it about 20 times.” 
https://www.nytimes.com/newsgraphics/card-story/wirecutter-best-ice-cream-makers?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

Is that self-control or what? In 312 weeks, 2,190 days, this guy with a great ice cream machine makes ice cream only about 20 times. He must be a lot of fun.

Monday, June 10, 2024
Terrific Tom, Peter Benjaminson, author of “The Life and Times of Betty Boop,” and I went to Roosevelt House, 47-49 East 65th Street, to hear Peter Sparrow discuss his new book “Awakening the Spirit of America: FDR’s War of Words With Charles Lindbergh — and the Battle to Save Democracy,” a non-fiction companion to Philip Roth’s “The Plot Against America.”

Sparrow effectively conveyed the challenges faced by Roosevelt, trying to control isolationist public opinion and counter a global icon as war consumed Europe.

Wednesday, June 12, 2024
If you have had the misfortune of spending time with me in the last few months, you have heard me complain about my slow recuperation from surgery last year. This week, I probed possible underlying causes, a CAT scan on Monday and a stress test on Tuesday. The results were positive, that is negative, no problems found. That leaves Sloth and Indolence, two reindeer overlooked by Santa, at the root of my infirmity. 

.  .  .

I am maybe the next to the last person in North America who has never seen the movie "Titanic” (1997). Tonight, however, I saw a revival of "Titanic," the Broadway musical, also from 1997, but otherwise unrelated. It was part of the Encores! series of short-term revivals. There was no attempt to have dramatic stage or scenery effects. Rather, a powerful score, beautifully sung, made for a memorable evening. Bravo Encores!

Thursday, June 13, 2024
I have made some significant course changes in my life, going to law school at age 56, for example. However, a contemplated next step has been thwarted. My plan to move to North Dakota and run for Congress is now barred by popular vote. “North Dakota sets age limit for Congress candidates.”
https://ca.news.yahoo.com/north-dakota-sets-age-limit-204610275.html

Currently, the United States Constitution only sets a minimum age requirement of 25 to sit in Congress. An upper limit would certainly be challenged in court. At my age, though, I can’t sit around waiting on the appellate process.

Friday, June 14, 2024
Today is Flag Day, Martha-Ann Alito’s favorite holiday.

.  .  .

George Orwell wrote, “An autobiography is only to be trusted when it reveals something disgraceful.”

I pass.